Iron Man 2 Villain Casting

Mickey Rourke, the so-hot-right-now comeback star of The Wrestler, and Sam Rockwell (Confessions of a Dangerous Mind) are in talks to join the upcomingIron Man sequel as dual villains.

Rockwell, The Hollywood Reporter says, is up for the part of Justin Hammer, "a multibillionaire businessman and a rival of industrialist" of Tony Stark. Incidentally, Rockwell was one of director Jon Favreau's original choices for the Iron Man role.

As for Rourke's part, there appears to be some confusion. Variety says that he would play "Tony Stark's Russian alter ego, a heavily tattooed bruiser who is in the arms trade and battles Iron Man in his own nuclear-powered armored suit." The trade mag hints that he's the Crimson Dynamo.

But wait... The Hollywood Reporter describes the character differently. They say Rourke will portray "a tattooed Russian heavy named Ivan who becomes Whiplash, a man with deadly, technologically enhanced coils." That doesn't sound like Whiplash at all -- that character is a girl, except in the Ultimate universe where he's only been briefly glimpsed. The description sounds a little bit like Omega Red, but we're inclined to think that Rourke is actually playing Crimson Dynamo, as Variety states.

Will Rourke play Crimson Dynamo?

Did somebody get their wires crossed here? Is it intentional misinformation? We think the latter is a real possibility given the extremely convoluted nature of today's announcements.

Finally, THR scoops that another role, that of Tony Stark's assistant Natasha, has yet to be cast. Confused yet?

Share your thoughts on Iron Man 2, coming in May 2010, in the comments below.

UPDATE:Marvel's profile of Whiplash reminds us that he was once called Blacklash. His real name is Mark Scarlotti and he was a weapons designer and head of research for Stark International who fell in with organized crime. At one point "he was an operative for Justin Hammer, another rival of Tony Stark. Hammer called on Scarlotti for various reasons even if he had to turn him against another Hammer employee." Scarlotti was killed by the sentient Iron Man armor in Iron Man #28.